Collapsible shoe-tree.



O. A. BOWRON.

COLLAPSIBLE SHOE TREE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 15,1911.

Patented Dec. 26, 1911.

, shoe, tree.

TTE

crime A. BOWRON, or new "roux, N. 'Y.

GOLLABSIBLE SHOE-TREE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLARA A. BoWRoN, a citizen of the United States,residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York,have invented new and useful Improvements in Collapsible Shoe Trees, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention consists of a new and improved form of collapsible shoetree.

The tree is made of canvas or any heavy non-stretchable cloth or it maybe made of soft leather or kid. The tree has an inner form madeof thinsheet rubber of the same shape as the tree, but not necessarily the samesize. This inner rubber form has at its upper end a valve tube with avalve attached. The valve extends through the canvas shoe tree, which islaced where the inner rubber tree is inserted. This inner rubber form isinflated with air so as to expand the canvas shoe tree and make it ashard and solid as wood, but of course the tree when constructedaccording to my invention does not weigh as much as wood and by beingcollapsible can be readily packed in a traveling bag or trunk.

The canvas or cloth shoe tree is made the size and shape of the shoe inwhich. it is to be used. The rubber inner form need only be made in afew sizes, as the air stretches it to any desired size of the canvas Thetree is inserted in the shoe in collapsed form and then inflated with asmall hand bulb (not shown). The shoe tree can be made to fit any sizeor any shape of shoe or slipper or boot high or low. The canvas ornon-stretchable material of which the shoe tree is made is strapped orreinforced in order to give it resist the air pressure.

strength and rigidity and the s'eamsmay also be strapped to enable thetree to better I am aware that collapsible shoe trees have been madeheretofore, but they have all been made of rubber or elastic materialand they have never been practicable for the reason that the rubberhaving nothing to restrain it, will expand most in the parts.

where there is the least pressure, and it is impossible to get a properamount of pres- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 15, 1911.

tinctly in Fig.

Patented Dec. 26, 1911i. Serial No. 633,633.

sure where it is most required. By my invention the entire tree is madeof cloth or non-expansible material and completely covers the rubberform, so that when the air is inserted the pressure is uniformthroughout the entire tree.

In the accompanying drawings; Figure 1 represents a side elevation of mytree fully distended for use. Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view taken onthe line 03 m Fig. 1. Fig 3 is a rear elevation of Fig. 1 showihg thelacing. Fig. 4 is a view of the inner rubber form partly broken away.

The device consists essentially of a tree made of canvas ornon-stretchable material or leather and is designated by the letter a.Straps or bands 6 are placed at intervals to lend rigidity to the treeand hold it in shape. The inner collapsible pneumatic form or member 0is placed inside the tree a through an opening 9 and then the opening inthe canvas tree is laced up by laces d passed througlrholes c as shownmore dis- A valve f is attached to the rear upper end of the member 0.The tree is then inserted in the shoe and air pumped in through thevalve f by an ordinary small rubbe'r hand pump which is not shown here.The pressure of the air ,into the member 0 of course inflates it andthus in turn inflates the outer member a so that a tree is producedwhich is hard and rigid andfills out the shoe and keepsit in shape aswell as a wooden tree would, but it is of course much lighterthan wood.I do not confine myself to the exact method for lacing the opening, itbeing within the scope of the invention that otliermcans of fasteningcould be used. A

I claim:

1. A. collapsible shoe tree comprising an outer cover of canvas, apneumatic rubber form arranged in the cover, said cover being providedwith a slit adapted for the insertion of the form, devices for closingthe slit, a valve tube connected to the form and projecting through theupper portion of the slit.

2. A collapsible shoe tree comprising an outer co er of canvas withreinfolicmg emme strips extending about the sides of the cover, Intestimony whereof I have hereunto set a, pneumatic rubber form arrangedin the my hand in the presence of two subscribing cover, said coverbeing provided with a slit wltnesses.

adapted for the msertlon of the form, de- CLARA-A. BOWRUN. vicesfox-closing the s1it,' e valve tube con- Witnesses: nectecl to the formand projecting through WM. E. Wonmmn,

the upper portion of the slit, H.. V. MGELROY.

